System and method for seeking a wireless network for a wireless device

ABSTRACT

The invention relates to a system and method for initiating a command relating to one network that an electronic communication device may be in communication with, depending on triggering conditions relating to another network that the device may be in communication with. In the method, the device initiates a command relating to a network for a communication device only after satisfaction of a predetermined condition relating to another network. The network may be a 802.11 a  network; the another network may be a non-802.11 a  network; the predetermined condition may be detection of a connection to the non-802.11 a  network; and the command may be to initiate monitoring for a connection to the 802.11 a  network.

The invention described herein relates to a system and method forseeking a wireless network connection for a wireless device. Inparticular, the system and method may be used to seek and/or search fora connection to an IEEE 802.11x-compliant network.

BACKGROUND

Wireless handheld mobile communication devices perform a variety offunctions to enable mobile users to stay organized and in contact withothers in a communication network through e-mail, schedulers and addressbooks.

As wireless devices are portable, they connect and communicate withseveral different wireless communication networks as they roam about theland. As a wireless device roams, it periodically scans to determine ifit is in communication range of one of the target networks. Such scansexpend power on the device, thereby depleting its battery. Also, scansmay be initiated in a rote, automatic manner, thereby occasionallyinitiating unnecessary scans for certain network deployments. Forexample, there may be a situation where a wireless network is providedat a given location only if certain other parameters are provided.

There is a need for a system and method which addresses deficiencies inthe prior art.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Embodiments of the invention will now be described, by way of exampleonly, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a communication network having aplurality of wireless networks therein that can communicate with awireless device as provided in an embodiment;

FIG. 2 is a flowchart of exemplary steps executed by the wireless deviceof FIG. 1 in determining an existence of a communication link to one ormore wireless networks in accordance with an embodiment;

FIG. 3 is a schematic representation of the wireless electronic devicein FIG. 1 in accordance with an embodiment; and

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of certain internal components of the devicein FIG. 3.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF AN EMBODIMENT

The description which follows and the embodiments described therein areprovided by way of illustration of an example or examples of particularembodiments of the principles of the present disclosure. These examplesare provided for the purposes of explanation and not limitation of thoseprinciples and of the invention. In the description which follows, likeparts are marked throughout the specification and the drawings with thesame respective reference numerals.

In a first aspect, a method for initiating a command relating to anetwork for a communication device is provided. The method comprisesinitiating a command relating to the network after satisfaction of apredetermined condition relating to another network.

In the method, the network may be a 802.11a network; another network maybe a non-802.11a network; the predetermined condition may be detectionof a connection to the non-802.11a network; and the command may be toinitiate monitoring for a connection to the 802.11a network.

In the method, initiating the command to the network may comprisemonitoring for receipt of a beacon signal from the network. Further, thenon-802.11a network may be selected from at least one of the followingnetworks: a 802.11b network; a 802.11g network, a 802.11b/g network anda 802.11n network.

Additionally, the predetermined condition may further comprise at leastone of the following conditions: a time tracked by the device; a presentlocation of the device; and a signal strength detected by the device forthe another network having a minimum predetermined strength.

Additionally, after the connection is established, the connection may beterminated after satisfaction of a second predetermined condition. Thesecond predetermined condition may comprise at least one of thefollowing conditions: an elapsed time of searching for the network; apresent location of the device; and the signal strength ofcommunications from the non-802.11a network dropping below apredetermined threshold.

In the method, the network may be one type of 802.11 network and theanother network may be another type of 802.11 network different from thetype of the first network.

In a second aspect, a system for initiating a command relating to anetwork for a communication device is provided. The system comprises: amonitoring process for monitoring for connection signals from aplurality of networks for the device; an evaluation process to evaluatethe connection signals and determine whether a trigger condition for acommand relating to one of the networks has been satisfied; and acommand process to initiate the command for the network. In the system,the evaluation process causes the command process to initiate thecommand for the network upon detecting satisfaction of the predeterminedcondition from connection signals from the monitoring process.

In the system, each network may be of the same type. Alternatively, inthe system, there may be a first network of a first type and a secondnetwork of a second type.

In the system, the network may be a 802.11a network; the command may bea request to monitor for a connection to the 802.11a network; and thepredetermined condition may comprise detection of a connection to anon-802.11a network by the monitoring process.

In the system, the monitoring process may monitor for receipt of beaconsignals from the networks.

The system may further comprise a GUI process providing an interface onthe device to change the predetermined condition. The condition couldalso be set in the UI of a separate server and subsequently downloadedto the device.

In the system, the predetermined condition may further comprise at leastone condition selected from the following conditions: a time tracked bythe device; a present location of the device; and a signal strengthdetected by the device for the connection to the non-802.11a networkhaving a minimum predetermined strength.

In the system, after the connection is established, the evaluationprocess may monitor for a second predetermined condition and uponsatisfaction of the second predetermined condition, the system mayinitiate a command to terminated the connection.

In the system, the second predetermined condition may comprise at leastone of the following conditions: an elapsed time of searching for thenetwork; a present location of the device; and the signal strength ofcommunications from the another network dropping below a predeterminedthreshold.

In other aspects, various combinations of sets and subsets of the aboveaspects are provided.

Exemplary details of embodiments are provided herein. Briefly anembodiment provides a method and system to initiate a command for awireless network for a device, such as to seek a connection to thenetwork. When seeking a network, instead of simply polling for a network(such as polling for a beacon signal for the network), an embodimentrelies on other characteristics, parameters or information to determinewhen to search and/or seek for specific classes of networks. In oneembodiment, the connection is sought after another network is found.First, a description is provided on general concepts and features of anembodiment and its related network and network-seeking and detectionalgorithms. Then, further detail is provided on an exemplary wirelessdevice related to an embodiment.

To begin, details on an exemplary network and its communicating devicefor an embodiment are provided. FIG. 1 shows communication system 100where network 102 provides a suite of applications, services and data toits connected devices 104 through its associated servers. Devices 104connect to network 102 through wired connections to network server 106which has software and hardware facilities to manage all communicationsof data and messages among devices communicating in network 102. Network102 can be implemented in any known architecture, providing wired orwireless connections to its elements.

Wireless devices 108 communicate with each other through wirelessnetworks 110. In many environments, networks 110 are local,geographically small, wireless networks (such as wireless local areanetworks or WLANs), perhaps being contained within a single building112. Wireless devices 108 include handheld devices, cell phones andcomputers (either desktop or portable) having a (wireless) network card,network adapter and/or network interface controller (NIC) installedtherein. There may be one or more networks 110 at a particular site andthe geographic coverage 114 of each network 110 may overlap fully,partially or not at all.

Additional networks 110 may be located in a second geographic area (notshown). For example, building 112 may be located in Waterloo, Ontariowhile the second geographic location may be located Mississauga,Ontario. While located in the vicinity of building 112, a wirelessdevice 108 is able to communicate through one or more of the first groupof WLANs 110. Similarly, while located in the vicinity of the secondgeographic location, that wireless device 108 would be able tocommunicate through one or more of the second group of WLANs. Whiletravelling between the first and second geographic locations, a wirelessdevice 108 may be able to communicate through one or more of each of thefirst and second groups of WLANs depending on available signal strength,transmitted power, etc. If WLAN networks are not available between firstand second groups, then device can use wide-area wireless networks ifavailable.

Each network 110 includes an antenna, access point (AP) 116 andsupporting radio transmission equipment known to those skilled in theart. In an embodiment, each access point 116 is an IEEE 802.11 radioreceiver/transmitter (or transceiver) and functions as a bridge betweenits respective WLAN 110 and network 102. For security, each access point116 may be communicatively coupled to network 102 through a respectivefirewall and/or VPN (not shown). It provides data distribution servicesamong devices 108 within network 110 and between devices 108 in network110 and other devices in other connected networks. One distributionservice provided by access point 108 for its related stations is toestablish a logical connection between a device 108 and an access point.

Interface server 118 in network 102 provides hardware and softwaresystems to allow network 102 to communicate with wireless networks 110.For communications directed to wireless devices 108, wireless servicesenterprise server 120 provides an interface with server 106 fortransmissions destined to devices 108 and vice versa.

Database 122 provides a data storage system for one or more elements innetwork 102, including server 106. Security systems within network 102can be provided by known techniques and systems. Gateway 124 providesand monitors selected communications between elements in network 102 andexternal devices connected through Internet 126.

Some further detail is provided on an exemplary installation fornetworks 110A and 110B relating to an embodiment. Networks 110A and 110Bare implemented as Wireless Fidelity (Wi-Fi) networks generallyfollowing standards set by the IEEE LAN/MAN Standards Committee, knownas IEEE 802, through its working group “11”. The 802.11 standard definesmedia access control (MAC) and physical (PHY) layers in the Open SystemsInterconnection (OSI) protocol model for WLAN. Such standards are knownto those of skill in the art. Administrative functions for networks 110may be provided by software controlling them. The software mayadminister functions such as network identification and network accessparameters.

The initial 802.11 standard was followed with a series of amendments,where each amendment was identified by an alphabetic suffix following inthe standard's numeric identifier “802.11”. The family of 802.11amendments is sometimes referred to as the 802.11x family. Currently,the 802.11 amendments encompass six wireless modulation techniques thatall use the same communication protocol among their communicatingelements. Wireless transmission for networks following the 802.11b and802.11g amendments transmit communications in the 2.4 GHz frequencyband. Networks following the 802.11a amendment transmit communicationsin the 5 GHz band. The 802.11b amendment was the first widely acceptedwireless networking standard. Selected 802.11 amendments and terms arebriefly discussed below.

The 802.11b amendment has a maximum raw data rate of 11 Mbit/s and usesa media access method defined in the original 802.11 standard. The802.11b amendment uses Complementary Code Keying (CCK) to modulate itsdata. In field use, the typical maximum throughput is about 5.9 Mbit/swhen data is transmitted using transmission control protocol (TCP) and7.1 Mbit/s when using user datagram protocol (UDP). A 802.11b network istypically deployed as a point-to-multipoint configuration, wherein anaccess point 116 communicates via an omni-directional antenna withdevices 108 in the transmission range of the access point. A typicalindoor communication range is 30 m at 11 Mbit/s between devices 108 andthe access point 116 and 90 m at 1 Mbit/s.

The 802.11g amendment provides a maximum raw data rate of 54 Mbit/s.Generally, devices 108 having 802.11g-compliant hardware can alsocommunicate in 802.11b networks. Data can be modulated in a 802.11gnetwork using one of several techniques, depending on the transmissionrate, including: orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing (OFDM), CCKand Differential Binary Phase Shift Keying/Differential Quadrature PhaseShift Keying with Direct Sequence Spread Spectrum (DBPSK/DQPSK+DSSS). Ithas been observed that the maximum transmission range of 802.11g devicesis slightly greater than that of 802.11b devices, but that the rangethat devices can achieve a full data rate which may be smaller than therate of a 802.11b network. For North American transmissions, both the802.11b/g protocols define 7 transmission channels. However, the fullcomplement of channels, covering all world-wide regions, is 14 channelsbetween 2.412 GHz and 2.484 GHz, where each channel is 22 MHz wide.

The 802.11a amendment modulates its transmissions using OFDM, providinga maximum raw data rate of 54 Mbit/s. The data rate is reduced in astep-wise fashion, as needed. For North American transmissions, the802.11a amendment defines 12 non-overlapping channels, where eight (8)channels are dedicated to indoor deployments and four (4) channels arededicated to point-to-point networks. However, the full complement ofchannels, covering all world-wide regions, is 27 channels between 5.107GHz and 5.805 GHz, where each channel is 20 MHz wide.

The 802.11n amendment was announced in 2004 and its real data throughputis estimated to be up to 540 Mbit/s. Projected speeds may be up to 50times faster than transmissions in 802.11b and over 10 times faster thantransmissions in 802.11a or 802.11g.

For a 802.11 network, a “station” is a basic component in the network. Astation is any device that implements the functionality of a 802.11protocol and has a connection to the wireless network. Typically, the802.11 connection and communication functions are implemented inhardware and software and may be provided in a network connectioncircuit or system in a network interface card (NIC) at the station. Astation may be any device, including a laptop computer, handheld device108, or an access point 116. Stations may be mobile, portable, orstationary. All stations support the 802.11 station services ofauthentication, de-authentication, privacy, and data delivery. For thepurposes of an embodiment as it relates to 802.11 standards, devices 108may be considered to be stations.

An Independent Basic Service Set (“IBSS”) is a set defining a series ofstations that communicate with an access point. The access pointoperates as a local relay for the stations. All stations communicatewith the access point and preferably do not communicate with each otherdirectly. All frames are relayed among the stations through the accesspoint. The access point may also provide connection to a distributionsystem. For the purposes of an embodiment as it relates to 802.11standards, each network 110 may be considered to be an IBSS. Otherconnection interfaces may be provided for a network, such as a directlink set-up or an ad-hoc set-up.

A service set identifier (“SSID”) is a unique 32-character network name,or identifier, that is created and associated with a particular WLAN110. The SSID can be any alphanumeric entry up to a maximum of 32characters and is typically case sensitive. It may be set by a networkadministrator using network administration software for a control serverof WLAN 110. The SSID should be chosen so that it differentiates oneWLAN from another. As the SSID differentiates one WLAN from another, anyAPs and all wireless and other devices attempting to connect to aspecific WLAN may require that a device provides the correct SSID forthat WLAN before permitted the device to join that WLAN.

Further detail is now provided on messages generated and sent betweencomponents in WLAN 110. In a 802.11-compliant network, messages are sentbetween its AP 116 and its communicating devices 100 in datatransmissions called frames. Frames are sent and processed in a“send-and-respond” protocol. As such a frame may be broadcast by an AP116 to one or more devices 108. When a device receives a frame, itextracts data from the frame and then it may generate a response. Asimilar communication dialog may be initiated by a device 108 to AP 116.There are several classes of frames including control, management anddata. Control frames assist in delivering data frames between stations.Management frames facilitate connection establishment and maintenancebetween a device 108 and AP 116. In particular management frames areused: to allow a device be associated, disassociated and re-associatedto a network; to allow a device to be authenticated with a network; andto allow a device to initiate a probe request to an AP to requestinformation about another device in a network. Frames may includeadditional information such as source and destination MAC addresses, acontrol field that provides information on the 802.11 protocol version,frame type and other status indicators. It will be appreciated that aperson of skill in the art has knowledge of the protocols of the frames.Additional materials relating to same are provided in published 802.11Working Group materials.

A beacon frame is a type of a management frame that is periodicallybroadcast by an AP 116 (e.g. every 100 ms) to provide a signal of itspresence to the communication boundaries of its network. The body of abeacon frame contains: a beacon interval, providing the amount of timebetween beacon transmissions; a timestamp, which may be used by astation to synchronize itself and update its local clock; and the SSIDof the WLAN 104 of the AP 116. The beacon frame can also provide: dataindicating the supported transmission rates of the WLAN; data regardingthe signalling parameters of the WLAN, such as frequency hopping spreadspectrum, direct sequence spread spectrum, etc.; data on thecapabilities of the WLAN; and data providing a traffic indication map(TIM). The beacon frame includes a frame header and cyclic redundancychecking (CRC) field. The destination address of the frame is set to all1's, which is the broadcast MAC address. This will cause all otherstations on the applicable channel to process a received beacon frame.Other embodiments may selectively broadcast a beacon or may vary thebroadcast transmission parameters upon satisfaction of presetconditions.

Devices 108 and their NICs may continually scan some or all 802.11 radiochannels and listen for beacons. There may be a filter to listen or notlisten for specific beacons. If multiple beacons are received frommultiple APs, then device 108 may evaluate the parameters of theunderlying networks to identify a most suitable network. Thereafter, thedevice would then attempt to establish communications to that networkthrough the selected AP.

As noted above, before a station can be associated with a WLAN, it mayneed to obtain the SSID of the access point. Generally, a networkidentification sniffing functions (such as that provided by Windows XP)is provided on device 108 to allow the device to process the networkinformation in a received beacon signal. Such functions can extract theSSID data to configure device 108 and its associated NIC with the properSSID for that WLAN.

Further detail is now provided on how a device 108 interacts with accesspoint 116 when entering the coverage area of network 110. Each device108 that enters a coverage area 114 needs to become associated with therelated access point 116 before a communication connection is made tonetwork 110. Once an association is made, access point 116 is able touse identification data relating to device 108 to determine where andhow to deliver data to that device 108.

Device 108 associates with a WLAN as follows. As a device 108 roams intothe coverage area 114, it periodically scans for any beacon signals onsome or all channels on one or more classes of 802.11 network(s). When abeacon is found, the device extracts data parameters of particularnetwork. If device 108 is receiving multiple beacon signals becausemultiple coverage areas 114 overlap at the particular location of device108, then device 108 may go through an arbitration process to determinewhich beacon signal(s) to respond to. This enables a ranking of accesspoints based on the received signal strength of the beacon or otherparameters, such as capability information of the network. The NIC maythen generate and send an association frame to its most preferred AP toattempt to associate with that AP.

After making a successful association, a station may continue to scanfor other beacons in case the signal from the currently-associatedaccess point become too weak to maintain communications. Generally,device 108 invokes the association service only once, typically when itenters a coverage area 114. Each device 108 can be associated with onlyone access point, but an access point 116 may be associated withmultiple devices 108.

Many devices and access points following the 802.11 standard cancommunicate with 802.11a, b and g networks. For example Cisco SystemsInc. offers its Aironet 1130AG Series (trade-mark) of access points thatprovide 802.11a/b/g communication capabilities in one box. As such, forthose access points, the transmission region for their 802.11a networkmay largely overlap with the region for their 802.11b/g network.

For a particular network, when device 108 is seeking a 802.11a network,this may involve scanning up to 27 channels. A prior art network-seekingalgorithm would normally periodically and automatically scan for beaconsignals for a 802.11a network. This approach may be wasteful. Based inpart on the deployment of access points providing multiple 802.11network capabilities, to take advantage of possible transmission overlapfor a 802.11a network, an embodiment utilizes a differentnetwork-seeking algorithm. Therein, the algorithm conditionally seeksfor a network. The search for a network (e.g. by searching for a 802.11abeacon signal), may be initiated only after a beacon signal for a802.11b/g network is detected. For other networks, it will beappreciated that a matrix of algorithms can be provided for otherembodiments where a particular 802.11 network initiates itsnetwork-seeking algorithm, based at least in part, on the detection ofanother 802.11 network. It is also feasible, subject to any networkconnection restrictions to seek another connection to another network ofthe same type once a connection is detected. For example, if aconnection is detected for a 802.11a network, then that may be a triggercondition for seeking another connection to another 802.11a network. Inthis case, the other network may be scanned on different channels thanthe detected 802.11a network.

Additionally or alternatively, an algorithm may be provided that seeksother networks only after other trigger conditions are satisfied. Theexecution and monitoring of the results of the algorithm may beimplemented in an evaluation process operating on device 108. Theevaluation process may be implemented in one or more modules in device108. For example, conditions may incorporate one or more of thefollowing parameters: detection of a certain network, non-detection of acertain network, detection of minimum signal from a certain network,time parameters, and geographic location of the device. Also, searchesfor other non-802.11 networks may be initiated after the detection of a802.11 network (or vice versa). Table A provides an exemplary set oftrigger conditions that may be implemented when initiating a particularcommand relating to a particular network.

TABLE A First trigger 2^(nd) Trig. 3^(rd) Trig. Command conditionQualifier condition Qualifier condition Stop Condition Seek a Detectionof and It is after and Current 2 minutes after 802.11a a 802.11b 10:00a.m. location of initiating a seek network and/or (EST) the device is802.11g in 416 area network(s) code Seek a Dropping of and It is beforeor Current Signal strength 802.11b a 802.11n 12:00 p.m. location of ofthe 802.11n network network (PST) the device is network drops not in thebelow a 905 area predetermined code minimum Terminate Detection of and A802.11b connection to a Bluetooth network a CDMA has not network beendetected Send status Detection of command to 802.11a Bluetooth networknetworkAs noted earlier, it will be appreciated that the type of network soughtunder the “command” field, may be of the same or different type of anynetwork in any trigger condition. It will be appreciated that the listof qualifiers and the list of networks to be scanned can be expanded toaccommodate different sets of conditions as required by particulardevice 108. Also, any type of qualifier may be used, such as “AND”,“OR”, “NOT”, etc. For example a geographic location of device 108 may beprovided and determined by techniques and systems known in the artincluding: GPS; cellular country code data evaluation; specific celllocation evaluation; Access Point country code evaluation; and or anRFID tag. The list of trigger conditions may be rearranged in differentorders, expanded or contracted to meet specific network seekingconditions for other embodiments.

As noted in Table A, conditions may be provided as to when a seek for anetwork is to be terminated. As with the triggers to initiate a search,the conditions to terminate a search may further include one or more ofthe following parameters: detection of a certain network, non-detectionof a certain network, detection of minimum signal from a certainnetwork, time parameters, and geographic location of the device. Thevalues of these parameters would likely be different than the values forparameters to initiate a search.

In other embodiments, the seek parameters of a network search algorithmmay be controlled by an embodiment. For example, as a default networkseeking state, a certain limited number of channels for a network may bescanned at a particular interval. However, upon satisfaction of thepredetermined triggering conditions, the scanning frequency may increase(or decrease) and/or the number of channels scanned may increase (ordecrease). Other variations on additional searching parameters may beprovided, such as initiating searches on specific channels, whenpredetermined conditions are met.

Similarly, if a stop condition for a search algorithm is satisfied, thenthe search may be degraded, for example, by decreasing the scanningfrequency or decreasing the number of channels scanned.

Although trigger conditions as described herein relate to initiating andterminating a network connection based on triggering conditions, in thealternative or in addition to such connection commands, othernon-connection commands may be initiated upon satisfaction of thetriggering conditions.

It will be appreciated that in a broad sense, an embodiment provides amethod and system that initiates one activity or command for one type ofnetworks only upon satisfaction of a condition relating to anothernetwork. Although some above embodiments are described in relation toconnection and disconnection to a network, other embodiments may have anon-connection command sent to that network upon detection of a certaincondition in another network.

Referring to FIG. 2, flow chart 200 shows a process operating on device108 used to determine when to seek a connection to a particular class ortype of network. First at step 202, process 200 starts. At step 204,process 200 reviews any triggering parameters for network searches. Suchparameters may be stored in a database accessible to device 108 and/ormay be provided to device 108 from an outside source. Alternatively oradditionally, such parameters may be set for a graphical user interface(GUI) operating on device 108. At step 206, monitors are activated forthe trigger signals for the embodiments. At test 208, a check is madewhether a trigger signal has been received. If no trigger signal hasbeen received then process 200 returns to step 206. If a trigger signalhas been received, then the process progresses to step 210 where a scanis initiated for the network. When the system is implemented in a 802.11network, the monitoring of signals and the initiation of commands mayfollow the functional requirement of 802.11 frames as noted earlier.

It will be appreciated that other embodiments may have the elements ofprocess 200 in different orders or may have more or less steps and teststherein. Process 200 may be atomized and may be executed by one or moreevaluation, monitoring and command initiation processes operating ondevice 108. Also, process 200 may operate in the background on device108.

To assist with management of these triggering arrangements, a softwareapplication referred to herein as a profile management module may beprovided in device 108. Management of input and display of the profilescan be provided through a graphical user interface (GUI) that may beprovided as part of that module. In the GUI, screen may be providedimplementing selection and activation criteria for searching fornetworks (or other actions) based on triggering conditions provided fromconditions relating to other networks as described herein. Once theconditions for the triggering conditions are entered, other processesand systems on device 108 may monitor for various conditions relating tothe status of all networks conditions and connections that are monitoredby device 108 and compares the conditions against the triggeringconditions set in the profile management system. If a triggeringcondition is satisfied, the other processes can recognize this state andthen proceed to implement any follow-up commands associated with thecondition and update any relevant status indicators for the networks,monitoring process(es), triggering process(es) or any other relevantsystems.

Device 108 can store in its database a list of profiles of wirelessnetworks that have been access or can be accessed by the profilemanagement module. For example, a profile can be provided for every SSIDfor a network or access point providing a saved group of networksettings relating to the WLAN of the SSID. A SSID profile typicallyincludes information such as the following: the SSID or WLAN name; aprofile name (i.e., an optional alternate name for the WLAN other thanthe SSID); the operating mode (e.g., infrastructure, ad hoc, etc.); thestandard type (e.g., 802.11a, 802.11b, 802.11g, etc.); and, security,encryption, and password settings (e.g., none, personal, enterprise,wired equivalency privacy (“WEP”), Wi-Fi protected access (“WPA”),etc.). Additional features such as any triggering conditions that needto be satisfied prior to initiating a beacon search (or other networkdetection search) for a target network may be provided. Profiles aretypically displayed to a user in a profiles list on the wirelessdevice's display screen and are typically arranged in order of networkconnection priority. A user may switch between WLANs by choosing a WLANfrom the profiles list.

The profiles list may be populated by the wireless device uponperforming a search or “scan” for available WLANs in the vicinity of thedevice. In this case, the profiles GUI will typically display availablenetworks that broadcast their SSIDs and that are in range of thewireless device. The profiles list may also include networks for which auser has previously entered a SSID and any required profile settings. Inaddition, if a new network is detected or needs to be entered, the usermay create new profiles for the profiles list through configurationinput screens. If a new network is detected, some fields in theconfiguration screens may be pre-populated with data extracted from theconnection information (such as the SSID, etc.). The list may or may notshow profiles that do not have an active connection for the device.

FIG. 3 provides general features of an electronic device for receivingelectronic communications in accordance with an embodiment of theinvention, which is indicated generally at 108. In the presentembodiment, electronic device 108 is based on a computing platformhaving functionality of an enhanced personal digital assistant withcellphone and e-mail features. It is, however, to be understood thatelectronic device 108 can be based on construction design andfunctionality of other electronic devices, such as smart telephones,desktop computers, pagers or laptops having telephony equipment. In apresent embodiment, electronic device 108 includes a housing 300, an LCD302, speaker 304, an LED indicator 306, a trackball 308, an ESC(“escape”) key 310, keypad 312, a telephone headset comprised of an earbud 314 and a microphone 316. Trackball 308 and ESC key 310 can beinwardly depressed along the path of arrow “A” as a means to provideadditional input to device 108.

It will be understood that housing 300 can be made from any suitablematerial as will occur to those of skill in the art and may be suitablyformed to house and hold all components of device 108.

Device 108 is operable to conduct wireless telephone calls, using anyknown wireless phone system such as a Global System for MobileCommunications (GSM) system, Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA)system, CDMA 2000 system, Cellular Digital Packet Data (CDPD) system andTime Division Multiple Access (TDMA) system. Other wireless phonesystems can include the many forms of 802.11 wireless broadband, like802.11a, 802.11b, 802.11g, etc. that support voice. Additionally, aBluetooth network may be supported. Other embodiments include Voice overIP (VoIP) type streaming data communications that can simulatecircuit-switched phone calls. Ear bud 314 can be used to listen to phonecalls and other sound messages and microphone 316 can be used to speakinto and input sound messages to device 108.

Referring to FIG. 4, functional components of device 108 are provided inschematic 400. The functional components are generally electronic,structural or electro-mechanical devices. In particular, microprocessor402 is provided to control and receive almost all data, transmissions,inputs and outputs related to device 108. Microprocessor 402 is shownschematically as coupled to keypad 312 and other internal devices.Microprocessor 402 preferably controls the overall operation of thedevice 108 and its components. Exemplary microprocessors formicroprocessor 402 include Data 950 (trade-mark) series microprocessorsand the 6200 series microprocessors, all available from IntelCorporation. Microprocessor 402 is connected to other elements in device108 through a series of electrical connections to its various input andoutput pins. Microprocessor 402 has an IRQ input line which allows it toreceive signals from various devices. Appropriate interrupt firmware isprovided which receives and reacts to the signals detected on the IRQline.

In addition to the microprocessor 402, other internal devices of thedevice 108 are shown schematically in FIG. 3. These include: display302; speaker 304; keypad 312; communication sub-system 404; short-rangecommunication sub-system 406; auxiliary I/O devices 408; serial port410; microphone port 412 for microphone 316; flash memory 414 (whichprovides persistent storage of data); random access memory (RAM) 416;clock 418 and other device sub-systems (not shown). Device 108 ispreferably a two-way radio frequency (RF) communication device havingvoice and data communication capabilities. In addition, device 108preferably has the capability to communicate with other computer systemsvia the Internet.

Operating system software executed by the microprocessor 402 ispreferably stored in a computer-readable medium, such as flash memory414, but may be stored in other types of memory devices, such asread-only memory (ROM) or similar storage element. In addition, systemsoftware, specific device applications, or parts thereof, may betemporarily loaded into a volatile store, such as RAM 416. Communicationsignals received by the mobile device may also be stored to RAM 416.

In addition to an operating system operating on device 108, additionalsoftware modules 420 enable execution of software applications on device108. A set of software (or firmware) applications, generally identifiedas applications 420, that control basic device operations, such as voicecommunication module 420 and data communication module 420B, may beinstalled on the device 108 during manufacture or downloaded thereafter.As well, software modules, such as calendar module 420C, address book420D and location module 420E.

Profile management module 420M is software and/or firmware that providesprocesses to receive and update profile lists for wireless connectionsand to allow a user to define trigger conditions for commands for anetwork. As noted earlier, the trigger conditions may be to initiate aconnection request to the network based on conditions of anothernetwork. Additional trigger conditions may be set to terminate orinitiate follow-up commands to the network.

Network connection module (NCM) 420N is software and/or firmware thatprovides processes to detect and analyze when device 108 is incommunication contact with one or more networks 110 and determine theparameters of each communicating network 110. It may also control whento seek a connection to a particular network, using profile data asprovided by profile management module 420M, to implement an algorithmsimilar to process 300, described earlier. When NCM 420N is used tomonitor 802.11x networks and issue commands relating thereto, themonitoring of signals and the initiation of commands may follow thefunctional requirement of 802.11 frames as noted earlier.

Additional modules such as personal information manager (PIM)application may be provided. Any module may be installed duringmanufacture or downloaded thereafter into device 108.

Data associated with each application, the status of one or morenetworks, profiles for networks and trigger conditions for commands fornetworks can be stored and updated in flash memory 414.

Communication functions, including data and voice communications, areperformed through the communication sub-system 404 and the short-rangecommunication sub-system 406. Collectively, sub-systems 404 and 406provide the signal-level interface for all communication technologiesprocessed by device 108. Various applications 420 provide theoperational controls to further process and log the communications.Communication sub-system 404 includes receiver 422, transmitter 424 andone or more antennas, illustrated as receive antenna 426 and transmitantenna 428. In addition, communication sub-system 404 also includesprocessing modules, such as digital signal processor (DSP) 430 and localoscillators (LOs) 432. The specific design and implementation ofcommunication sub-system 404 is dependent upon the communication networkin which device 108 is intended to operate. For example, communicationsub-system 404 of device 108 may operate with the Mobitex™, DataTAC(trade-mark) or General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) mobile datacommunication networks and also operate with any of a variety of voicecommunication networks, such as 802.11 networks, Bluetooth networks,Advanced Mobile Phone Service (AMPS), Time Division Multiple Access(TDMA), Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), CDMA 2000, PersonalCommunication Service (PCS), Global System for Mobile Communication(GSM), etc. Other types of data and voice (telephonic) networks, bothseparate and integrated, may also be utilized with device 108. In anyevent, communication sub-system 404 provides device 108 with thecapability of communicating with other devices using variouscommunication technologies, including instant messaging (IM) systems,text messaging (TM) systems and short message service (SMS) systems.

Short-range communication sub-system 406 enables communication betweendevice 108 and other proximate systems or devices, which need notnecessarily be similar devices. For example, the short-rangecommunication sub-system may include an infrared device and associatedcircuits and components, a Wi-Fi or a Bluetooth™ communication module toprovide for communication with similarly enabled systems and devices.Sub-system 406 may have one or more inputs or outputs to sub-system 404in processing signals for its networks.

In addition to processing communication signals, DSP 430 providescontrol of receiver 426 and transmitter 424. For example, gains appliedto communication signals in receiver 426 and transmitter 424 may beadaptively controlled through automatic gain-control algorithmsimplemented in DSP 430. One particular operational aspect of receiver422 and antenna 426 is that they need to be tuned to receive signals inthe 802.11 network bands, e.g. signals in the 2.4 GHz to 5.8 GHz rangefor sub-systems 406 and if needed, sub-system 404. Additional filters onantenna may also be used to provide such functionality. Module 420N canreceive and interpret the signals and can generate its own signals fortransmission to network 110.

Receiver 422, antenna 426 and network connection module (NCM) 420Nprovide at least some of the hardware and software elements needed todetect when device 108 is in the presence of communication signals fromnetwork 110, thereby enabling device 108 to communication with otherdevices in network 110.

As described earlier, NCM 420N also has system and processes thatextracts any profile trigger conditions as set and managed by theprofile manager and monitors for their partial and full satisfaction.Once a trigger condition is satisfied, NCM 420N may initiate thefollow-up commands and controls associate with the trigger condition.

For example, if one trigger condition was to initiate a beacon signalmonitor for a 802.11a network only when a 802.11b/g network is detected(as per a defined trigger stored in the profile manager), then NCM 420Noperates as follows. First, NCM 420N sets controls for communicationsub-systems 406 or 404 (if so implemented) of device 108 to not monitorfor receipt of a beacon signal for a 802.11a network. When sub-systems406 (or 404) detect that a 802.11b/g network beacon is received,thereafter, an evaluation process in NCM 420N would initiate a monitorfor a beacon signal for a 802.11a network and would update relevantstatus indicators for the 802.11b/g and 802.11a networks. It will beappreciated that implementation of the noted processes and functions maybe provided and distributed in one or more modules and processesoperating on device 108.

Similarly, after a connection to a network is established, if there areany termination trigger conditions for the network, then NCM 420N (oranother process) monitors for such conditions as defined by a networkprofile and if they are all satisfied, then the connection may beterminated.

Powering the entire electronics of the mobile handheld communicationdevice is power source 434. In one embodiment, the power source 434includes one or more batteries. In another embodiment, the power source434 is a single battery pack, especially a rechargeable battery pack. Apower switch (not shown) provides an “on/off” switch for device 108. Apower source interface (not shown) may be provided in hardware,firmware, software or a combination of such elements to selectivelycontrol access of components in device 108 to power source 434. Uponactivation of the power switch an application 420 is initiated to turnon device 108. Upon deactivation of the power switch, an application 420is initiated to turn off device 108. Power to device 108 may also becontrolled by other devices and by software applications 420.

Device 108 may also have global positioning system 436 to assist inidentifying a present location of device 108 and may also have lightsensor 438 to provide data on the ambient light conditions for device108.

Although an embodiment has been described in terms of seeking and/orotherwise searching for a 802.11 network, the features of an embodimentcan be provided in other network technologies. For example, when apredetermined search criteria is satisfied, another embodiment maygenerate an active request signal for a network connection, instead ofinitiating a monitoring process for a particular beacon signal.

Further still, in other embodiments, once the predetermined connectionparameters are satisfied, other processes may be initiated which may ormay not be related to seeking a network connection.

The present invention is defined by the claims appended hereto, with theforegoing description being merely illustrative of embodiments of theinvention. Those of ordinary skill may envisage certain modifications tothe foregoing embodiments which, although not explicitly discussedherein, do not depart from the scope of the invention, as defined by theappended claims.

1. A method for initiating a command relating to a network for acommunication device, comprising: initiating a command relating to saidnetwork after satisfaction of a predetermined condition relating toanother network relating to said communication device, wherein saidpredetermined condition comprises at least one of the followingconditions: a time tracked by said device; a present location of saiddevice; and a signal strength detected by said device for said anothernetwork having a minimum predetermined strength.
 2. The method forinitiating a command relating to a network as claimed in claim 1,wherein: said network is a 802.11a network; said another network is anon-802.11a network; said predetermined condition comprises detection ofa connection to said non-802.11a network; and said command is toinitiate monitoring for a connection to said 802.11a network.
 3. Themethod for initiating a command relating to a network as claimed inclaim 2, wherein said initiating said command to said network comprisesmonitoring for receipt of a beacon signal from said network.
 4. Themethod for initiating a search for a connection to a network as claimedin claim 3, wherein said non-802.11a network is selected from at leastone of the following networks: a 802.11b network; a 802.11g network, a802.11b/g network and a 802.11n network.
 5. The method for initiating asearch for a connection to a network as claimed in claim 1, whereinafter said connection is established, said method further comprisesterminating said connection after satisfaction of a second predeterminedcondition.
 6. The method for initiating a search for a connection to anetwork as claimed in claim 5, wherein said second predeterminedcondition comprises at least one of the following conditions: an elapsedtime of searching for said network; a present location of said device;and the signal strength of communications from said another networkdropping below a predetermined threshold.
 7. The method for initiating acommand relating to a network as claimed in claim 1, wherein: saidnetwork is a non-802.11 network; said another network is a 802.11network; said predetermined condition comprises detection of aconnection to said 802.11 network; and said command is to initiate astatus request signal to said network.
 8. The method for initiating acommand relating to a network as claimed in claim 1, wherein: saidnetwork is one type of 802.11 network; said another network is anothertype of 802.11 network different from said one type of 802.11 network;said predetermined condition comprises detection of a connection to saidanother type of 802.11 network; and said command is to initiatemonitoring for a connection to said one type of 802.11 network.
 9. Asystem for initiating a command relating to a network for acommunication device, comprising: a monitoring process for monitoringfor connection signals from a plurality of networks for said device; anevaluation process to evaluate said connection signals and determinewhether a trigger condition for a command relating to a network of saidplurality of networks has been satisfied; and a command process toinitiate said command for said network, wherein said evaluation processcauses said command process to initiate said command for said networkupon detecting satisfaction of said predetermined condition fromconnection signals from said monitoring process, said predeterminedcondition comprising at least one of the following conditions: a timetracked by said device; a present location of said device; and a signalstrength detected by said device for a connection to another network ofsaid plurality of networks having a minimum predetermined strength. 10.The system for initiating a command relating to a network as claimed inclaim 9, wherein each network of said plurality of networks are of thesame type.
 11. The system for initiating a command relating to a networkas claimed in claim 9, wherein said plurality of networks comprises afirst network of a first type and a second network of a second type. 12.The system for initiating a command relating to a network as claimed inclaim 11, wherein: said network is a 802.11a network; said command is arequest to monitor for a connection to said 802.11a network; and saidpredetermined condition comprises detection of a connection to anon-802.11a network by said monitoring process.
 13. The system forinitiating a command relating to a network as claimed in claim 12,wherein said monitoring process monitors for receipt of beacon signalsfrom said plurality of networks.
 14. The system for initiating a commandrelating to a network as claimed in claim 13, further comprising a GUIprocess providing an interface on said device to change saidpredetermined condition.
 15. The system for initiating a commandrelating to a network as claimed in claim 9, wherein after saidconnection is established, said system monitors for a secondpredetermined condition and upon satisfaction of said secondpredetermined condition, initiates a command to terminated saidconnection.
 16. The system for initiating a command relating to anetwork as claimed in claim 15, wherein said second predeterminedcondition comprises at least one of the following conditions: an elapsedtime of searching for said network; a present location of said device;and the signal strength of communications from said another networkdropping below a predetermined threshold.
 17. The system for initiatinga command relating to a network as claimed in claim 9, wherein: saidnetwork is one type of 802.11 network; said another network is anothertype of 802.11 network different from said one type of 802.11 network;said predetermined condition comprises detection of a connection to saidanother type of 802.11 network; and said command is to initiatemonitoring for a connection to said one type of 802.11 network.
 18. Thesystem for initiating a command relating to a network as claimed inclaim 9, wherein: said network is a non-802.11 network; said anothernetwork is a 802.11 network; said predetermined condition comprisesdetection of a connection to said 802.11 network; and said command is toinitiate a status request signal to said network.